Apparently, Nut Pob is known notoriously for their special Angry Catfish dish. I've been here a handful of times, and when I first sampled the Angry Catfish off my friend's plate, it tasted exceptional. Lip-Smacking good! Just enough heat, and just enough tang. The fish was a good size and fried to perfection, while still maintaining a moist interior. The fish was absolutely delicious and I envied my friend - I restrained myself, when I really wanted to scarf down all of his delicious fish!!! ...I returned here the other night for a solo dinner so that I could have a plate of Angry Catfish to enjoy all my lonesome. Excitedly - Once the fish was served, I had taken off all the meat from the top-side of the fish and put it over my plate of rice, drizzled the sauce over, took a heaping spoonful of the fish and sauce-soaked rice.....and my mouth was on FIRE. FIRE, I SAY!!! I should've (but didn't) ask to give it back to the kitchen since I had already stripped an entire half off the fish. The waitress did not ask what level of heat I preferred and was given the HOTTEST. I seriously could not enjoy it. The heat was completely unbearable. The pain from the heat was magnified since I was eating alone and had to endure the scorching heat alone in silence since I couldn't laugh it off or talk about the heat level as a person normally would if they were dining with companions. =( Chicken Satay & Spring Roll.......is served with sweet & sour sauce. Disappointment because these two are supposed to be served with a peanut sauce!!! Service - it sucks. The restaurant waitresses are younger generations of family of the owners. Service is always inconsistent and impersonal. You order, you get your food, you pay. No follow up service in between. The only thing I enjoy here, is the Beef Paenang. (Beef / Coconut-curry based sauce) and their Thai Iced Tea. If you do decide to go here and want to order any food remotely hinting at heat, just remember to tell them how spicy you prefer things or your mouth will be on fire!!! read more

Outside: The exterior of the restaurant was very unassuming and plain as it is in a strip mall. There was an ornate wooden room divider in the window. They have free parking. Inside: The seating and tables were standard and the art and cultural items appear very similar to those in many other Asian restaurants. Menu: The menus each have a nice external touch of a swatch of cultural woven cloth. The selection included many items from both Thailand and Laos along with a few general Chinese food items such as Crab Rangoon. The prices seemed to be quite reasonable with an average cost below $10. Staff: Our waitress met us at the door and accompanied us through our cultural meal. When asked she made recommendations that turned out great. She came back often to check out our meal, our drinks and our overall satisfaction. When we were done and just talking she quickly removed any empty plates. Food: Everything appeared cooked fresh and arrived piping hot. From the appetizers to the main dishes, everything was great. We started with some Crab Rangoon which came out hot and served with the delicious sweet chili sauce that I love from Thailand. One big brand is "Mae Ploy" and it is like a sweet and sour sauce filled with dried pepper flakes and seeds which lends to a sweet and hot flavor mix that goes great with the Rangoon. The main dishes included Pad Thai, Oyster Beef and Angry Combination. The Pad Thai had a wonderful smokey flavor that was a great mix with the chicken and vegetables. The Oyster Beef was a bit like Mongolian Beef found at some Chinese places, but with a fresh, slightly sweeter flavor. Everyone loved this dish! The Angry Combination was a mix of beef, chicken and shrimp that along with the vegetables was doused in a wonderful hot sauce based on Thai chilis. On the first bite it was notably hot. After awhile the heat turned most to tears and the flavor seemed to wash out a bit in the heat. It seemed like this dish was better in small quantities or shared as it became too much of a good thing and the tongue only processed the chili over time. Drinks: Several people in our group ventured out and tried the Thai tea which came with milk or cream in it. Those who loved it enjoyed the flavor. Those who didn't like it found it to be either too "woody" or "tasting of sweet dirt." Overall: Everyone was very pleased with the food and service we experienced in the Nut Pob. From the sweet to the heat, the flavors were both known and new and a bit of Thailand became part of our world experience. Personally I'd say to avoid the tea unless you're sure you already like it, enjoy the "Angry" items in moderation, have the Crab Rangoon and ignore the basic outside and come in for a great time with friends, dining in the friendly service and great food of Thailand. read more

See all

I have had the pleasure of eating pho all over the country, attending Des Moines's first Pho Cook off and been served pho by some of my good friends. But this pho? Maybe they had a bad day but this was honestly the worst pho I have ever had. Spring roll 1/5 stars - more of a salad roll then spring. Also shrimp was very bland like defrosted cocktail shrimp. Beef Pho 1/5 stars - broth tasted like it was made with a chicken bouillon cube, beef tasted like it had been broiled in water and no flavor. Service 3/5 Service really wasn't bad for me. I gave it 2 stars for the service but that pho was barely edible and I would recommend anyone that comes here to try the other dishes. read more

As far as selection goes on the south side there isn't much. Nut Pob is is a little hidden gem!!! While the outside and location(parking) may not be ideal they have always served some delicious food. The only things I would be critical on is the service can be a little slow and the parking can be horrendous. read more

Table of 4. Came here on Sat night. They seemed to be busy but not packed. Service was below average. The server had a difficult time refilling my drink. And was not around much. The food was very good. It was somewhat spicy so if you don't like it hot, get it with no spice. The place was not fancy but clean and nicely decorated. I'm giving 3 Stars because of the food and not the service. read more

If you are looking for the best chicken satay in town, this is the place. Also try tom yom gai and laap gai. The kids like the grilled meat balls and the pad see ew is great. I would avoid the wine and keep in mind service can be slow if you get some of the younger servers. read more

Nut POB Restaurant - Thai Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

I really want to give Nut Pob 5 stars. I really do. But I can't. Let me tell you why. The food is consistently very good. By consistently I mean over the course of the last 15+ years. I've had many things on the menu, and it's a favorite of my friends in the Asian community. They describe it as authentic, and I simply know it as delicious. The pad Thai, the beef laap, the spring rolls - all are delicious. Oh, and try the chicken Penang. But don't expect fast service. Or friendly. I know some of the servers, and a few are great. But I've seen them harried and unhappy as it seems as though they're understaffed at peak hours. The owner seems like a nice woman, but once when I was with a party of 8, the service was especially dismal. We asked repeatedly for water refills before getting them, we got the wrong orders at the table, and waited about an hour for the entrees to arrive. It wasn't even that busy. At the conclusion of the meal, one of my friends asked to speak to the owner. She refused to come out to speak with us. I was embarrassed, as I'd raved to my out-of-town friends about this restaurant, and it seemed the owner wasn't even interested in offering an apology. I did not return for over a year. Eventually I thought I'd try take-out and that worked out great. When not subjected to the service, the food is much more palatable. read more

Hands down the BEST crab rangoons in the metro. Their lunch menu is great and the food has always been very fresh and tasty! My favorites are the Thai Cashew Chicken and Angry Catfish. If you've never tried Lao food this is a great place to try laap and papaya salad, two iconic Lao dishes. read more

I still love this place. We brought about 10 people on a somewhat busy Friday night without reservations and they took great care of us. The Tom Yum wasn't my favorite, but I will the say the Pad Thai was very good. I think they gained 2 new customers. Parking is not the best - in this strip mall off Indianola Rd. and it is not easy to get in/out of but I have always like the service and the menu is very good. Order the Angry catfish or any of the Angry menu items if you like it spicy, you will enjoy it - and if you want ask them to kick up the heat, I am sure they can. read more

Good food and nice service. Low key and nothing fancy, but the food is very well flavored. I really enjoy Nut POB. I recommend the Chicken Pad Thai. read more

Nice place...clean VERY good food !! Ive had all kinds of stuff there--all good! Even the PHO is top notch great pricing , good Thai beer Warning = if you get "angry" chicken or shrimp.....its HOT.....real hot ! read more

GREAT food. Amazing egg rolls and crab rangoons. Their sweet chili dipping sauce is my favorite. I honestly couldn't tell you about the whole menu because I can't stop myself from ordering the cashew chicken every time I'm there. It's the best cashew chicken I've ever had. Big pieces of pineapple, lots of cashews, and mushrooms make this dish amazing! Plus, it comes in huge portions. I usually end up taking leftovers home for lunch the next day. The only reason it gets 4 stars is the service is lacking. Nothing outstandingly terrible, but service is slow and there tends to be only one server working the register AND serving every time I am there. Food for takeout also seems to take longer than necessary, even if you call ahead. But overall, the amazing food beats out slow service. read more

My first time eating Thai food from Nut POB. I had it delivered through the "DoorDash" app. The food was so good! I had shrimp pad Thai with pork spring rolls. I like how the food was packaged for delivery. I will definitely be eating there again. Also, prices were very reasonable! read more

Service has improved tremendously over the past few years! We almost always get carry out but when we dine in service has been faster than it usually is. My favorite items here are the papaya salad, seafood tom yum soup, angry catfish, beef laap, crab rangoon & angry chicken. Food is still great! read more

Been meaning to write a review and rate this place but haven't gotten to it until now. I've been going to Nut Pob since it first open and have been a fan since then. Word of advice for anyone that visits first time and can handle spicy food: Order anything with the word "Angry" in it! Trust me! read more

Food is great. Service is painfully slow (20 minutes for a server, one hour for my food).

Located in a small slightly off street strip center Nut Pob delivers excellent Thai entrees reasonably priced. I had the pad se ew which was expertly cooked. My companion had the vermicelli combo which was excellent. Service was efficient and attentive. read more

I've been coming here for years with my family. It's always a good place to get Thai/Lao food. I would recommend getting the angry catfish. Only downside has been the service is always hit or miss since they mostly hire highschool kids as servers. read more

One of my all time favorite places to eat on the Southside eat here at least twice a month.

Phad Thai and red curry pork are great here. That is what we always get and have never been disappointed

I love Nut Pob it's the best Thai restaurant in town. I created my own dish and they were willing to accommodate my wishes. Try it out ginger chicken add shrimp,squid and scallops no mushroom( they drink up too much of the sauce) add sno peas and medium spicy. You also have to try the Thai tea, angry catfish, som tam, pad Thai and laap moo you won't be sorry. I've been a loyal customer for 10 years!! Tell them Dee sent u. read more

Tried Nut POB after a coworker recommended it and was not disappointed. I had the Shrimp Pad Thai and spring rolls - both were delicious. I thought the spice scale was comparable to other thai places in town, but the flavor was much better. I got my order to go, but the staff seemed friendly during the brief encounter. I will definitely be returning. read more

Since moving to the south side I've been to nut pob twice. The first time I got lad na beef and it was amazing thick wide rice noodles in this delicious wonderful garlic gravy. I went today craving this same dish. I ordered the same thing, only to be very disappointed and let down. The sauce was much darker this time, and was absolutely awful. It was sweet yet had soo much salt and just tasted terrible and the beef was not even close to edible, it was chewy and disgusting. No server ever came around to ask how our food was. There were six tables and two servers. I work as a server and understand it can be difficult, but honestly they were awful. One didn't even speak English I don't think. So once it came time to check out the waitress asked how our food was and I told her my honest opinion and told her that I didn't eat it and all she had to say was "I'm sorry I'll let them know. We have two new chefs today." There was no effort to try to keep my business, no offer of comping the dish or getting something new, so I will not be returning. Like I said I have worked at restaurants for quite a while and understand how to deal with a unhappy customer but they can't grasp that apparently. Bottom line, don't waste your time here. You can literally go to any other restaurant and get a better experience. read more

No thank you. This place is very dirty and grungy. However, I thought I'd give it a chance as many dives can have amazing food. Well, this was not a dive with amazing food, it was just a dive. I do not recommend this place. Drive to SW 9th to an establishment called Sam's for the best Chinese food not only on the Southside but in the metro! read more

Good food the papaya salad was great.. Really like the quail .. But the customer service was a little bad.. But the food was good..

I only come here for 3 things: Laotian papaya salad, sticky rice and chicken wings. The papaya salad is one of my favorite SE Asian dishes that hits all the flavor profiles: hot, sour, salty, and sweet. A traditional salad that is pounded in a clay mortar with cherry tomatoes, garlic, lime juice, Thai chili birds and fish sauce. I also like to order a side of vermicelli noodles on the side to soak up the sauce. The chicken wings are marinated then fried crispy. The mini me enjoys rolling the sticky rice into a little ball, then flattening it out to make a 'sticky rice and chicken taco'. Her idea of 'fusion' cuisine. The service was a ok tonight, but I've visited many times were the service was lacking. This restaurant has been around for many years and it's nice to have a Laotian restaurant in our great city. read more

This place has a great menu, bright ambiance and excellent service. Food is great !! I would highly recommend this place.

Their papaya salad and angry catfish is soooo good! If you are in the area, this is a must go restaurant. One of my all time fav thai rest.

My daughter and I ate here on a Sunday evening. There was no one but us when we sat down. The server seemed very rushed to take our order when there wasnt even no one but us. She took our order, came back with our drinks and forgot our straws. Took at least 5 minutes to get her attention to ask for straws!! Again, she seem rushed. Our food came after about 15 minutes wait. It was alright. My daughter ran out of water and no one even came by to ask how are food was or if we need more drinks. This entire time, there was about 8 people in the restuarant. We couldnt get her attention as she was very busy serving oyher table and probably have forgotten about us. Anyway, with no drinks we paid and left. Was not happy with the service at all! Very disappointed. read more

One of my absolute favorite restaurants. Best crab rangoons in town! Also the angry chicken is a must try if you love spicy food. We love to come here all the time. The homey, family owned restaurant vibe is great. Supporting our locally owned restaurants is our favorite, rather than chain ones. This is definitely a go to restaurant if you live in the Des Moines areas. The food here is absolutely never a disappointment. read more

Nut Pob isn't the same it used to be. The food tastes different. This used to be my favorite place in town for pad thai but it taste different now. They remodeled and it looks really nice and clean inside. Not sure if they have new cooks or what. Not as willing to drive across town for a meal as I used to be. read more

I been coming here for years and my mom knows the owner. I come here for the angry catfish and its always been good for me. The other stuff like the Lad Nah, Pad Sah Ew still taste good but she doesn't give much portions like she used to. I will keep sticking with the Angry Catfish. read more

Amazing food! If you're dining in or doing a carry out service can be a little slow. My go to is any of the angry dishes (usually angry catfish) and crabrangoons! read more

This used to be one of my favorite Asian restaurants, but things have changed. I frequently get take out from here, especially the Pad Thai. It used to be the best in town. It's almost as if they have new cooks or ownership.....my last two visits, the Pad Thai was barely edible. It tasted like the noodles weren't fresh, not much meat, and only one tiny shrimp (there used to be more and very large shrimp). After the first bad experience, I thought I'd give it one more try, but when the next visit was also disappointing, I stopped going there. It's a shame...they had a good thing going. read more

I'm going to make this short and quick. Food is delicious! Not a fan of the Pho here. I've aten most things on the menu. Husbands Favorite here is the Angry Cat fish(seriously good eats) My Favorite is the Pad Thai and Papaya/cucumber salad and chicken wings. Oh and dont forget the curry noodle although it can be a little warmer when it comes out. Con: Slow service. Though the reasoning can be because they make the food fresh. read more

Been eating here for over 10 years, back when it was half the size it is today. Honestly I've had a limited number of items off the menu because I've loved what I've had and stayed there. Most of the time I go for the spring rolls (not fried) for lunch and order pad thai that is mostly for take home. The fried egg rolls are good. Why not great? I've had Vietnamese coworkers bring in better from home so they are the standard for great, just more flavor developed, but I'll NEVER refuse the offer of Nut Pob's. Usually we "lose" one on the way home if I'm doing take out. I'll on occasion do the angry chicken and sometimes order "less angry"... I like some heat and sometimes I want more. My standard for YEARS was the curry chicken with sticky rice. It was a lovely red sauce that would on occasion be inconsistent (less flavorful and thin rarely). *SIGH* The last time I had this (two months ago) after another person in the family complained they destroyed this dish I had to see for myself. SOMETHING has changed. An ingredient, a supplier, something happened. For the first time in my life I left half a plate of food uneaten and did not take any home. Poor texture on the chicken, very different flavors... is it canned now? Told myself I'd give it a few months and try again. It went from perfect to I may never order again... especially when there are other thai places in town that do good panang curry that isn't the same, but I'll eat every bite for sure. Pad thai ... I really like theirs. The loss of the chicken curry was tempered by at least still having this dish. Usually needs some sriracha to get the heat I like but I'm more than glad to add it in. Now... I have a friend who thinks they "scorch" their sauce. But he loves pad thai at a place where I think its not as rich a sauce and there's too much sweetness. So... if you like more palm sugar you may not care for Nut Pob's pad thai. Just means more for me. The lunch portion should fill you and then feed you again for lunch next day. As for the service... I absolutely agree that you will wait longer than you think you should. You might need to flag down the sometimes only person serving (also seating and cashing out and taking order on the phone) for drink refills or take out boxes... but... I KNOW THIS. I've known this for years. So... I don't ding them for slower service because whose fault is it when I keep going back to the inattentive girlfriend whom I've dated for years? Mine. Give yourself a little extra time and ask for everything you might want when you have her attention... and don't be afraid to go to her and ask politely. read more

I have been coming to nut pob for a few years now and I must say the only thing that keeps me coming back is the food. HORRIBLE customer service. The waitresses are all mainly high schoolers that don't have manners. Most of the time I just order take out to avoid the reoccurring bad experiences I have had there. Best thing on the menu has definitely got to be their angry catfish (anything "angry" on the menu is delicious if you like spicy food!) I have ate angry catfish at numerous of restaurants and nothing compares to nut pob. Chicken wings, sticky rice and thum som is also delicious. Another dish is their cash chew chicken that I come back for. I would refer a lot of people to this restaurant if only their customer service was a lot better so I'm going to have to give this place 3 stars! Customer service is very important and should be highly practiced in today's time. read more

This place has some of the greatest food ever the food is very fresh and great service. I will be a regular here from now on !!!

We have a very love/hate relationship with this restaurant. The majority of the time, the food is great and the service is terrible. On more rare occasions, the food has been only subpar and the service actually decent. Because of the service issues, we tend to only get takeout now. We always get the same thing: combo pad Thai and crab Rangoon's. The sauce that comes with the Rangoon's is beyond amazing. It is worth a try, I just wish the owner would care more about the atrocious service and make sure that her food is consistent in quality. read more

I LOVE southeast Asian food and return again & again for the pad thai here. Good prices, great service. One of my Happy Places!